Philippine Boxing Legend Manny Pacquiao is reportedly going to have a match on April 9, 2016, according to top-rank promoter Bob Arum.
However, this fight will be his last ring bout as he moves on to another platform: politics.
"I'm telling you what he told me last week at dinner in New York," Arum told ESPN.com of their conversation.
"We talked very seriously, and he said, 'Bob, hopefully, by the middle of May I will have been elected senator in the Philippines, and at that point I cannot engage in boxing because I need to focus on the senate and I have to be in attendance.'
"Manny told me this fight on April 9 will be his last fight," said Arum, as per AFP (via Yahoo! Sports).
An official opponent hasn't been named yet, and a venue is yet to be confirmed as well. Arum did mention, however, some names that could be Pacquiao's last match.
England's former unified junior welterweight titleholder Amir Khan and junior welterweight champion Terence Crawford were mentioned alongside Juan Manuel Marquez and Timothy Bradley.
Crawford will be pitted against Montreal's Dierry Jean on Saturday. Bradley, on the other hand, has to win against Brandon Rios in November to be considered for another round with Pac-Man.
Marquez, a former rival, said that he is not interested in extending that rivalry with Pac-Man to a fifth fight.
Pac-Man (57-6-2, 38 KOs ) is a congressman in Sarangani Province in the Philippines since 2010. He will run for senator in the upcoming Philippine elections.
According to Boxing News 24, the eight-division world champion's boxing career will depend heavily on his win for a seat in the senate. The boxing news outlet reports that should he lose, it will be unclear if he will still wear the boxing gloves, or hang them in the locker.
The news outlet adds that the 36-year-old champ might likely win the due to his popularity in the country. However, fans who would want him to continue his pro boxing streak might decide to let him lose in the elections, so that he could continue with the slugfests.
"There are hundreds of congressmen, but if he wins the senate seat he has to be there to do the work," Arum told ESPN. "They do the real work in the senate in the Philippines, not just make a lot of [expletive] speeches like they do in the congress. It's a real job, and if Manny is serious about wanting to be president, these six years in the senate would be like an audition and for him to show his people that he really is a serious politician."
